Writer Profile

Books & Essays

Description: Walker?s first children?s book, A Place for Delta, is about the rescue of an orphaned polar bear cub and is set in both the Alaskan Arctic and the Appalachian mountains of north Georgia. It was published in June 2010 and has won this year?s International Book Award for Best Children?s Fiction. Currently Walker is working on a sequel.

Book Review #1:A Place for Delta by Melissa Walker could have been just another cute animal story geared to a middle reader audience. Instead it is a complex story involving three generations and weaves together environmental issues, politics, danger, intrigue, mystery, friendship, treasures, and even love.
The polar bear cub, Delta, is at the heart of the novel, and as we discover her story, we learn about some of the ways oil companies try to get around environmental restraints on drilling locations and the effects of global warming on polar bear habitats. We are exposed to these issues in a casual manner as Joseph is introduced to Delta and as we read about Kate's research.
Another story line involves solving the mystery of how Delta became orphaned. The researchers, research assistants, and Joseph and his friend Ada all end up investigating the situation, and here's where the action is found. The friendship between Ada and Joseph and the way they work together to find clues not only show that preteen boys and girls can get along but that they can be mutually respectful and equally intelligent.
A Place for Delta packs even more between the covers: life in Barrow, life in Georgia, friendship between professional women, how to rescue a wild animal, cooperation among generations, and some of the ways biological research is conducted.
Walker is never heavy-handed in her messages, making the novel appeal to a wide range of readers. Parents, teachers, and children of all ages who are interested in learning more about polar bears, the Arctic, and the environment will appreciate the glossary and resource section at the back of the book. Other readers will enjoy the novel as an animal story and/or be caught up in the mysteries.
The text is broken up by subtle and lovely etched ink (I think!) illustrations of Delta, and other scenes and Ada and Joseph's notes are rendered as if handwritten. These touches offer periodic small breaks for the young reader.

Book Review #2:A Place for Delta was a really fun read. Along with adventure and mystery, it brings in educational information about polar bears, life in Barrow, Alaska, and the Native groups of Alaska (aka Eskimos). At first I wondered if "Eskimo" was an acceptable term for the Inuit and Inupiat people living in Alaska, but after searching a little bit on Google it seems to be a commonly-used title in Alaska by those groups in reference to themselves. I felt more at-ease with the term after that. Speaking of terms, there is a great glossary at the end of the book to help young readers become more familiar with some of the animals and terminology used in the book. And when a reader has become thoroughly entranced by the topics in the book, they can find resources for further reading, useful websites, and recommended films at the back of the book as well.
This book would be a great addition to teachers' classroom libraries, school libraries, and personal libraries. My sister-in-law's 6th grade students will probably love it. It would be great for homeschoolers as well. Adults can't go wrong purchasing this book for the preteen children in their lives who enjoy reading about animals and the environment. Best of all, A Place for Delta is the first of a series of books following the adventures of the young characters as they care for young Delta, the polar bear cub.

Description: The anthology includes three essays by Melissa Walker: "Home," "The White Heron," and "Wildness in the Garden and the Wilderness."

Writing with a sense of southern place. Nature writers know that to be fully human is to be engaged with our natural surroundings. Elemental South is a gathering of works by some of the region's best nature writers?people who can coax from words the mysteries of our place in the landscape and the human relationship to wildness. Arranged by theme according to the basic elements by which many cultures on earth interpret ?earth, air, fire, water?the writings consider our actual and assumed connections in the greater scheme of functioning ecosystems. As we read of bears, ancient magnolias, swallow-tail kites, the serenity of a country childhood, the pleasure of eating real food, the remarkable provenance of ancient pottery shards, and much more, these works lure us deep into the southern landscape, away from the constructs of humanity and closer to a recognition of our inextricable ties to the earth. The writers are all participants in the Southern Nature Project, an ongoing endeavor founded on the conviction that writing like the kind gathered here can help us to lead more human, profound, and courageous lives in terms of how we use our earth. Some of the featured writers are originally from the South, and others migrated here?but all have honed their voices on the region's distinctive landscapes.

Book Review #1:"Provides a chorus of voices that blend
harmoniously despite their different geographies, backgrounds, and
styles. By tracing the fault lines and fractures of southern landscapes,
society, and spirit, this anthology helps the South begin to heal
stronger in the broken places."
?Will Harlan, editor of Blue Ridge Outdoors

Book Review #2:"Published 150 years after Thoreau's book, it is another Walden. I shall urge each of my grandchildren to read it." Southeastern Geographer, November 2006

Book Review #3:"This lush collection of works by members of
Southern Nature Project showcases the idiosyncratic impact of our
region?s natural surroundings on its writers, arguably a stronger
influence than the predictable Southern Gothic theme of family secrets."
?Atlanta Magazine

Book Review #5:"A richly varied collection, well worth your
time. If you spend your weekends and evenings exploring Northeast
Georgia's wilderness (or wish you did), Elemental South will whet your appetite for more. It probably will open your eyes, too, to more of what's around the bend."
?Northeast Georgia Living